Only Until Dreams
by Chesra Talasei
Summary: Cloud has been in love with a dream for quite a while. What happens when he meets the real thing? LC sideRS
1. Chapter 1: A Midsummer's Night Dream

**Title: **Only Until Dreams

**Rating:** M

**Summary:** Cloud has been in love with a dream for quite a while. What happens when he meets the real thing? LC side-RS

This is my first (yaoi)KH fic posted here, and this is also my first stab at the LC fandom. I don't know if this is good enough...hopefully it is. I've read plenty of 'dream-fics,' but most of them were RikuSora, not LeonCloud. Oh well...the story isn't quite as repetitive as it mightseem...at least, I think it isn't.

On with the fic!

VVV

**Chapter One: A Midsummer's Night Dream**

VVV

_It was heaven._

_He was in heaven; or at least, a place like it._

_Cloud moaned as he felt someone entering him, tearing him apart. This person was also trailing kisses down his neck, making him feel as if his body was on fire._

_"Mmm…Cloud…" a soft whisper into the blonde's ear. _

_Cloud moaned again. _

_The dark-haired man pushed himself deeper into Cloud, eliciting a loud gasp. He smiled, as if expecting that reaction. And then he caressed Cloud's face, making the blonde shiver. _

_He wrapped an arm around the Cloud, while the other hand was making his way the bottom part of his body. There was this strange excitement that shot up Cloud's spine as he did so. "Do you want me to stop?" he asked teasingly, pausing his hand over the blonde's erection—a casual brush, making Cloud feel all the more frustrated. _

_Cloud could feel it. And damn it, it was so close…how could he tease him like this? "Squall!" he whined. _

_He smirked, those beautiful greyish-blue eyes twinkling. Cloud could never be sure if they were blue, or grey, or this strangely impossible but absolutely alluring combination. But Cloud loved them; those eyes, the only ones like that in the world. "Fine, we'll play as you want…" _

_And suddenly Cloud was feeling pain like he never had before, he was screaming—his throat felt raw, his entire body was hurting, and somehow, he could hazily predict that he was going to be sore tomorrow. _

_"Don't stop," he pleaded softly. "Don't stop…don't let this stop, Squall…" Squall, the name kept repeating in Cloud's brain. Squall…_

VVV

"Squall…it means a brief, violent windstorm, usually with snow or rain…" Aerith closed the dictionary. "Why do you ask, Cloud?"

Cloud shrugged, blushing (but only a little) at the memory of last night's dream. Well, at least his dream boy had a name now.

That beautiful dream…he was every straight girl's secret desire and any gay male's wet dream. He had the most gorgeous dark brown locks, a finely toned body, and most of all, those beautiful, deep, greyish-blue eyes. Cloud loved staring into those eyes.

He had been dreaming of him since a year ago. And he had only known his name now…Squall.

_I wonder if I can ever meet him? _

Sephiroth suddenly came waltzing inside the library where Aerith and Cloud worked, wearing a dreamy expression. "Hey, Aerith!" he greeted with far too much enthusiasm for eight o'clock in the morning. Aerith rolled her eyes. "Lovely morning, isn't it?"

"The morning's dazzling, Seph," she replied sarcastically. Seph must have gotten laid again…him and his insatiable sex pleasures. He was lucky he had a lover who had almost the same amount of stamina as he had, or else Seph would be very, _very_ lacking in his sex time. Aerith knew for a fact that Seph and Zack were on the go almost five times a day. Maybe even more during the weekends.

Meanwhile, Sephiroth had noticed Cloud's absentminded look, and shook his head. "Not again."

Aerith giggled. "His dream prince strikes again. He even looks like he got _more_ than you last night, and that's saying something."

Sephiroth sighed. "Cloud…you need a boyfriend. Badly."

Cloud shook himself awake at Sephiroth's comment. "Huh?"

"It's true, Cloud," Aerith added. "I think you're sexually repressed. And that's not healthy."

The blonde frowned. "Like you're one to lecture me on my love life."

Aerith blushed and looked away. Sephiroth, however, continued to badger his blonde friend. "Don't be silly, Cloud. You keep waiting for that dream of yours—"

"He's not a dream!" Cloud insisted angrily. "He's not! He's real…he really is…" his voice trailed off. "I'm sure of it."

Sephiroth sighed. "Well…can you at least look around? There are plenty of guys who would be happy to go out with you if given the chance…"

"No." Cloud shook his head. "My heart is for him, and for him only."

Aerith threw her hands up in frustration. "I give up. Let's just leave him to his happy fantasies."

Sephiroth shrugged. "Fine. At least I'm happy with Zack."

"And I'm happy that you're happy," Cloud retorted. "Can you please stay out of my life now?" With that, Cloud made his way to one of the shelves of the library, busying himself—or, at least, pretending to.

Cloud really loved him—that dream of his. Maybe he wasn't real, but Cloud wished with all his heart that he was. He loved everything about him.

He hoped he would meet Squall soon enough.

VVV

"Squall!" Yuffie called, bouncing over to her coworker at Laundry Mat, carrying an armload of clothes. She threw them all at the washing machine. "You almost done?"

"Almost," the dark-haired man replied curtly. He was putting soap powder in the washing machines, robotically scooping exactly two scoops for each machine. "And it's Leon, Yuffie."

Yuffie rolled her eyes. "Typical of you, _Leon_," she said mockingly.

Leon ignored her. Yuffie snorted. "No time for small talk, eh?"

"I have other things to do." Leon turned the machines on.

"Like what?" The short girl put her hands on her hips. "Watch the clothes go around and around at the washing machine?"

Leon gave her a glare.

Yuffie held her hands up as surrender. "Geez…meanie…" she muttered. "I'll watch over this. Go get the remaining clothes at the back."

"Got it." Leon made his way to the storage room, intent on getting his work done.

Instead, he found Sora and Riku, his fellow coworkers, sprawled all over the floor, naked and having sex.

The first time Leon walked in on them, he was nearly shocked out of his senses—and that was saying something, since there were few things that surprised the dark-haired man. But after encountering the same thing over and over again, he was practically used to the sight of his two coworkers straddling each other.

"Hey Leon…" Sora greeted distractedly. Riku winked at him as a greeting.

Leon rolled his eyes. "I'm going to get the clothes that have to be washed." He pointed at the clothes sprawled all over the floor—Riku's and Sora's—which were obviously taken off in haste. "Should I add that to the pile?"

Sora shook his head. "No thanks—" he was cut off when Riku immediately caught his lips, kissing him fiercely.

Leon shook his head as he sidestepped them, easily getting all the clothes at one go, and leaving the storage room as quickly as he entered.

Yuffie looked up as he came back. She took in the telltale twitch on Leon's mouth. "They were at it again?" he asked.

Leon nodded. "You'd think they would get tired of screwing each other every single day."

Yuffie shrugged. "Well, I don't know. It's pretty fun doing it every now and then…" she smirked at Leon. "I bet you've never gotten some." When Leon didn't answer, her smirk widened. "I'm right, aren't I? Oh, poor Leon. A virgin! At your age! What are you, thirty? Forty?" she chuckled.

"I don't need it," Leon retorted, piling the clothes into another machine.

"Yeah right, Leon. You are sex deprived, do you know that? For cryin' out loud, are you asexual? You don't dig girls; you don't dig guys. Do you do plants or something?"

At Leon's scowl, Yuffie decided she should shut up now.

VVV

"Oh, Sephy-poo!" Zack jumped into Sephiroth's arms, nuzzling him. "I missed you!"

"I missed you too, honey!" Sephiroth replied, hugging his boyfriend with so much fluffiness that Cloud didn't know whether he would puke or not.

Honestly, he loved these two guys. They had been his best friends for forever. But when they got all PDA, it just wasn't nice to look at.

Granted, Sephiroth and Zack weren't like that in public. They were the tough, manly guys, cool and collected. Only when they were alone, or with Cloud, did they act like lovesick fools.

Cloud appreciated the fact that he was a close enough friend to see such interaction between his two guy friends. But sometimes it just wasn't good for his eyes and his ears—or his stomach, either, which was planning on lurching out the lunch he had eaten earlier. He was starting to lose the appetite to eat dinner.

Plus, this sugary exchange was enough to make him feel like ants were crawling up his leg. He was starting to regret inviting them over for dinner, but he knew that the two men couldn't cook to save their lives. It had practically become a habit for them to come by Cloud's apartment for dinner during Saturday evening, anyway. And Cloud didn't have the heart to turn them away when they came to him, looking so hungry and lost and pitiable.

He also didn't have the heart—or the courage—to turn them away when they started doing indecent things in his living room. It wasn't as if they hadn't seen each other for weeks. They just had sex this morning—possibly since last night—because Cloud knew very well they couldn't keep their hands off each other, and Sephiroth had been grinning like a maniac earlier in the morning.

Then again, once a day wasn't enough, and when he had encountered a depressed Zack during the afternoon, it was quite obvious they had only gotten some _once_. Unfortunately for him, his two friends were unquenchable when it came to getting some.

Zack considerably brightened when Cloud invited him—out of politeness; he knew that the black-haired man would make his way to his apartment for dinner during Saturdays whether invited or not—and mentioned the fact that Sephiroth would be there.

"We haven't seen each other for _hours_," Zack had said mournfully, looking positively devastated at the thought. "The last time I saw him was this morning, after breakfast!" And he had started sniffling, leaving Cloud feeling extremely awkward.

Honestly, as if they didn't live together or something. One just couldn't seem to function without the other, and if ever the other _was_ there, one would still not be able to function, since they were too busy fucking each other. Both were hopeless cases, in Cloud's mind.

Said hopeless cases were now currently done exchanging sweet nothings as greetings and getting far too intimate for any observer, friend or not a friend. Which brings Cloud back to his current dilemma. The wanting-to-eat-dinner-without-losing-his-appetite-or-his-earlier-lunch. The blonde was having a hard time thinking of a way out of this dilemma.

"Uh…guys? I thought you came over to have dinner, not to ravish one another," he commented timidly, as Sephiroth casually unbuttoned Zack's shirt.

"Oh, we did," Zack reassured him. "We're just having the appetizer."

"And we could carry this on until the main course…" Sephiroth whispered seductively into Zack's ear.

Zack giggled. "Or until dessert…"

Cloud had had enough. If he watched anymore of this, he would be losing more than his lunch or appetite. He'd be losing _both, _and that never was a good thing. "I'll be in the kitchen if you need me, then." With that, he left the two to themselves.

Sometimes he got a little jealous. Sure, he had his beautiful dream prince…but it was comforting to know that there was something real, something tangible, something _true_, right beside you…to be assured that the person next to you was there, and he was going to stay.

Aww crap. Did he overcook the chicken again?

Oh well. Those two had no right to complain, anyway.

Besides, if this carried on, Zack and Sephiroth might not eat the dinner he cooked. They might not even eat, now that he thought about it.

Sex drives away hunger for food.

VVV

"Anyway…don't you think Leon should get someone?" Yuffie asked Riku and Sora. Work was done, and the three were getting ready to lock up the store, and go home to their respective places. Leon had left already.

Sora shrugged. "We shouldn't really mess with other people's loves lives, Yuff." Riku nodded.

Yuffie rolled her eyes. "And if I didn't interfere with _your_ relationship, do you think the two of you would be together now?" she retorted.

The two blushed and didn't reply.

"Well, fine." Yuffie sighed. "I don't need your help, anyway. I'll take care of it myself." Her eyes glinted dangerously. She clasped the padlock, and took the key. Then she turned and waved goodbye at her two coworkers before walking away, whistling as he did so.

Riku moved nearer his boyfriend. "Do you think we should at least warn Leon?"

"And have Yuffie on our cases for the next ten years?" Sora shuddered. "No, thank you. Besides, if something good actually comes out of it, maybe Leon will be less moody. And if doesn't go well…at least we can say in all honesty that we weren't involved in anyway possible. Right?"

"Right…" Riku shot him a dubious glance. "If you say so."

VVV

Cloud grumpily made his way to the nearest laundry service in his neighborhood. Stupid, stupid Zack and Seph. Damn them.

It had been bad enough that they hadn't stopped their highly inappropriate activities during dinner. But noo. They had to continue it on _his_ couch, too.

Plus, when Cloud got down the next morning, he found out the two hadn't even left the house yet. And he also had to get his couch cleaned—if he wasn't too embarrassed to actually call professionals, that is.

Damn Zack and Sephiroth.

In addition to that, the two managed to coax Cloud into bringing their dirty and…sexed…clothes along with his trip to the laundromat. At first, Cloud had adamantly refused.

_"People will think I got laid!" he protested, blushing furiously. _

_Sephiroth shrugged. "Tell them they aren't your clothes. It's the truth, isn't it?" _

_Zack nodded. "Yeah, and you're going there, anyway! It'll save time!" _

_"For you two, maybe!" _

Somehow, those two managed to bribe him with a promise of vanilla ice cream. Damn his weakness for that cold treat. Damn him.

Eventually he managed to get to his neighborhood laundromat. He entered, and as usual, saw the perky girl with chin-length hair at the counter.

"Uh…hi…" he began awkwardly. He placed the bag with his clothes, along with Zack's and Seph's, on the counter. "I'll come back for it later."

"Huh…? Oh, sure…" the girl nodded distractedly. She waved him away.

Cloud was unsure on exactly what to do, and then he finally decided he was going to start to look like an idiot waiting for something. He didn't even know what that something _was_, to begin with. "I'll…uh…go now…"

The girl looked at him, a little amused. "Yeah, that's what most customers do. Unless you intend to watch us throw your clothes to the washing machine."

Cloud blushed, mumbled an apology, and was out of there as fast as lightning.

He was such an idiot.

VVV

Yuffie shook his head as the blonde customer immediately left store. She giggled. He was pretty cute, though a little dense.

Now back to that trail of thought. A good girlfriend or boyfriend for Leon…

She absentmindedly shifted through the bag the customer just left. Usual clothes. Shirts, jeans, boxers…

She suddenly felt something sticky when she touched a pair of black silk boxers. She quickly extracted her hands. "Oh my Gawd…" she checked out some other clothes. Some of them had a certain smell of sweat and sex to them.

She smirked. She couldn't believe it. Even Spiky had a sex life. She noted in her mind to make a comment about it when that customer came back.

She stuffed all the clothes back into the bag.

When Leon got here, she was making sure that he was going to take care of this particular pile. If nothing, it might at least make him aware that a lot of people had active social lives, not to mention had a working sex life.

All of the sudden, the dark-haired man entered the store.

Speak of the devil.

"Hey, Leon," she greeted cheerfully.

Leon sighed. "Hello, Yuffie." He looked at her suspiciously. "Why so cheerful?"

Yuffie blinked innocently. "Whatever do you mean? I'm always cheerful in the morning!"

"You're plotting something," Leon told her bluntly. "Don't bother hiding it."

Yuffie pouted. Damn Leon and his perceptiveness! "Here, take care of these clothes," she said, gesturing the bag of clothes the blonde customer had left.

"Whatever." Leon took the bag and headed for the machines.

The girl smirked mischievously, then returned to her earlier problem. Leon's sexual deprivation.

Maybe she should enlist Aerith's help on this one…

VVV

"Really?" Aerith rolled her eyes impatiently. "All right, Yuffie. Stop beating around the bush. Tell me what the problem is already!"

Some of the people in the library turned to glare at her. She blushed a little; she was the librarian, yet she was the one making the noise! With an apologetic look, she returned to her phone call with a resolution to be more quiet. "So?"

Yuffie's voice was clearly amused when she replied. "Aerith, where the hell are you calling from? Don't tell me it's the library."

She frowned at her cell phone. "Yes, it is. Why, is that a problem?" Aerith could almost picture Yuffie shaking her head.

"You'll probably get kicked out after I tell you what's the matter."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah, you'll probably exclaim out loud."

Aerith sighed. _Yeah right…_ "Try me, Yuffie."

"If you say so…"

A few minutes later, there was a loud shriek. "What the hell?"

Some of the people who were reading frowned. Honestly, what sort of librarian was the woman here?

"No way! You've got to be kidding me!"

_If we ignore it, she might go away…_ some people thought.

The noise was followed by a squeal. "Oh my gosh!"

Or they could call the authorities and have her deported.

"Yuffie!"

They decided that they had enough.

VVV

Zack was having a hard time trying not to burst out laughing in his friend's presence. "And then?"

Aerith glared at him. "What do you mean 'and then'? I nearly got fired, you idiot! Thanks to Yuffie…I am so going to kill her when I see her again!"

"Well, she did warn you…" Sephiroth mused.

"Don't tell me you're taking _her_ side!"

"Just being reasonable, Aeri," Zack reassured her, though he was still smiling far too widely for Aerith to take comfort in him.

"Gee, thanks, Zack," Aerith said sarcastically. "I feel so much better now."

Zack missed the obvious sarcasm. "I'm always happy to help!"

Aerith was just about to start a long rant about unsupportive friends and library policies when Cloud entered her apartment. "There you are. I heard you've been suspended from work. What happened?"

The brunette folded her arms. "I refuse to talk about what happened."

Cloud shrugged. "Fine, whatever." He turned to Sephiroth and Zack, who instantly told him, all the while smirking.

Aerith wished she had chosen better friends.

"Hmm…so…who's Yuffie?" Cloud asked after he heard the entire story.

"One of Aerith's cousins," Sephiroth explained. "At least, that's what she said."

She rolled her eyes. "She's always getting me into trouble."

"Aeri, that's what cousins do," Cloud pointed out to her.

"I guess…" Aerith sighed.

"So why did she call you, anyway?" Zack asked curiously.

"Apparently, she's planning on getting one of her male friends a girlfriend or boyfriend." Aerith made a face. "I can't believe she's asked me if I'm single or not. Is she actually thinking of matchmaking me?"

"Why not?" Cloud shrugged. "You don't have a love life. Maybe this guy would be good for you."

"She mentioned that Leon happened to be the most sexually inactive person she knew. In Yuffie-speak, he's a rock." Aerith rolled her eyes. "Guy with no personality. Not for me."

"It's worth a try," Sephiroth said. "I mean, you've been wanting a boyfriend for a long time."

Aerith shot him a weary look. "Seph, all my boyfriends went gay. I dated Zack, I dated you, and I dated Cloud. I have this strange something in me that makes guys go gay. I'm not getting my hopes up."

Zack smirked. "Point taken."

"I did, however, mention that I have single male friend," Aerith added innocently. "Since she asked me if I knew some good available people."

Cloud blinked. "Huh? You have a friend who's single?"

Zack and Sephiroth exchanged amused looks.

"Yeah, he's got spiky hair and blue eyes," Aerith continued, her eyes sparkling.

Then the blonde got it. "Wait…you were talking about me?" he jumped up. "You've got to be kidding me! I'm NOT single!"

"Then what are you?" Sephiroth asked challengingly. "You're not tied down to anybody. At least, someone who's _real_."

Sephiroth's words hit Cloud like a ton of bricks. It was true. In all aspects, he was single.

But he didn't want to meet anyone! No, he was waiting for Squall. He was not going to check out some other male that he didn't even know!

"No. Way." He said, indicating the conversation was closed.

"Oh, c'mon, Cloud!" Aerith pleaded. "It's not like you're going to date the guy! You just have to meet him! If you don't like him, you can always tell him no!"

"I'm not doing it!" he insisted, folding his arms.

"Gee, Cloud," Zack rolled his eyes, "It's not like you'll meet your dream boy any time this century, so you might as well get it on. Who knows; you might like him better than Scar or Squawk or whoever it was."

"It's Squall!"

Sephiroth looked at his watch. "It's getting late. Hey, Cloud, did you get the clothes from the Laundromat already?"

The blonde suddenly slapped himself on the forehead. "Ah, shit! I forgot to pick them up!"

"The store will be closing soon," Aerith pointed out. "You should get going. We'll continue this conversation next time."

Cloud glared at her. "There will be _no_ next time! I'm not meeting him!" and with that, he dashed out of Aerith's apartment, heading for the laundromat and seething inside at his friends' meddling with his love life.

VVV

Yuffie looked at her watch. Almost closing time. Gee, wasn't Spiky going to come back for his clothes?

"Can't wait to get out of here?" Leon asked dryly. He had noticed that his coworker had been repeatedly looking at her watch.

"Huh? Oh, not really…" she replied distractedly. Other than worrying about the idiotic blonde, she was also secretly pondering on the male friend Aerith had mentioned. They were yet to decide on the details on how to _accidentally_ bring them to meet. Yuffie was also thinking about how Leon would react once he found out he was being set up. Not very well, she guessed. He could potentially kill her—or, at least, give her the cold shoulder for a month, refuse to buy her lunch and pile more work on her. Yuffie shivered. She hated to admit it, but Leon was actually being nice the way he was now. If he would get worse…

Well, Yuffie didn't want to think about it.

Somewhere from the distance, she saw spiky blonde hair running straight for the store. She smirked. "About time," she murmured.

Leon frowned. "Time for what?"

Yuffie shook her head, still smirking. "Leon, go get the bag—you know, the black one?—of clothes you took care of a while ago. The customer is coming to pick them up."

The dark-haired man rolled his eyes. "What makes this customer particularly memorable, that you actually remember him?"

"The state of some of his clothing," Yuffie replied mischievously. Leon snorted. That was typical. Yuffie was pretty obvious in her planning. Well, he wasn't stupid. He actually saw Riku and Sora in action most of time—what would washing some man's clothes irk him? Even if the said man had sex? Leon wasn't exactly a prude, after all. He just wasn't as desperate for sex as the others were. Or as insatiable, in the case of his coworkers.

"You went through the clothes first," he stated.

"It was kind of hard not to notice the semen stains on the clothing, you know…" Yuffie motioned for him to get a move on. "Hurry, he's gonna be here in any second."

Shaking his head, Leon walked away to the storage room, walking in on Sora and Riku again. The two didn't even mind him; they were already both naked and in the climax of their love-making and were completely oblivious to everything. As usual.

Leon tried to locate the black bag in the dump of clothing.

VVV

"Hi!" the girl greeted him perkily as he dashed into the store, panting. "You're lucky—we were about to close in five minutes." She wagged her eyebrows suggestively. "And I'm sure you wouldn't want to go home without _your_ clothes. Wouldn't you?" There was something in her tone that made Cloud crimson. Oh shit…she was implying something, and Cloud didn't like it. "And I'm sure _someone else_ would miss their clothes, too."

Cloud went a shade darker, wishing he was anywhere but here. Damn Sephiroth and Zack! Damn them. "They're not mine," he mumbled, blushing.

"In denial, aren't we?" She nodded sagely. "It's okay. You know, consider yourself lucky, some of us," she smirked, "haven't even gotten some their entire lives."

Cloud was pretty sure that he was as red as any tomato that ever existed. He was so embarrassed that he actually entertained the thought of just running away and never coming back. Screw the clothes—he was going to buy himselfhis owndamn washing machine!

"For cryin' out loud, Kisaragi, don't harass the customers," a voice behind them said.

The girl rolled her eyes. "Whatever, Leonhart." She retorted. "And I wasn't harassing him."

"Oh, really?" there was definite sarcasm there. "Then **_what_** were you doing?"

"Jerk." She turned to Cloud. "Your clothes are behind you, my good sir," she told him mockingly.

Cloud blushed andturned around, not wanting to face the smirking girl any longer.Heended up meeting with the mostintense greyish-blue eyes he had ever seen. He almost gasped. No...he had seen them before...

The same…the exact same…

"Sorry about that," he said, shooting his coworker a dark look. "She's like that most of the time. Just tune her out."

"Hey!"

He ignored the girl. "Here." He held out the bag for Cloud to take.

But Cloud didn't notice. He was still entranced. This was him; Squall, his dream boy. The same beautiful eyes, the shaggy dark brown hair—granted, it was longer in real life than in his dreams, but they were still the same. He was a bit more tanned, somewhat taller than Cloud had imagined, but it was him; it really was him. He really existed! He wasn't just a dream!

VVV

Leon frowned. The guy had completely frozen; eyes wide, surprise etched all over the blonde's features. He blinked. Was there something on his face?

Yuffie spoke up. "You forgot to close the door, idiot."

Leon turned around and saw that he, indeed, forgot to close the door to the storage room. Leaving Sora and Riku in full display, for anyone to see. Not like they cared, but it was probably a shock to anyone. He glanced at the blonde; he was still staring. Probably scarred for life.

He sighed. He didn't want to scare away customers. Sora and Riku were going to get lectured on their lack of control on their libidos after this. "I'm sorry," he said to the blonde, and he went, closed the door with a bang (just to annoy Riku and Sora) and returned to the customer. "Are you okay?"

The spiky-haired blonde looked up, obviously startled. He was really out of it. "Huh…y-yeah, I'm fine…" There was still a strange expression in those innocent blue eyes; shock most prominent. Then something like fear replaced them, and he said suddenly, "I have to go!"

And like the white rabbit, the blonde was gone. He rushed out of the laundromat, running as if for his life.

Leon frowned again. "What the hell was that?"

Yuffie sighed. "You probably scared him away."

"It was Riku and Sora who scared him," Leon reminded her, glaring. "Why would I scare him?"

She shrugged. "He was probably shocked at that, but…" her voice trailed off. "Do you know you have a hell of a mean look? It's like your face is a permanent scowl. And it's kind of scary. You always look so grumpy…I guess the guy thought you were mad or something."

Leon was about to retort, when the door opened, and Sora and Riku walked out, half-clothed. And hemeanted half-clothed in a sense that they both had the decency to slip on their pants, but hadn't even bothered buttoning them—or at least making sure they actually covered something. "What was that for?" Riku asked groggily, a bit pissed off at being interrupted.

"You just freaked out a customer, that's what," Leon snapped. "And put some clothes on, for Pete's sake." He glared at them. "If this thing happens again, I'm going to ban sex in this Laundry Mat."

"What!" both boys cried out, looking horrified.

"I will. Now go and get dressed, before I think of firing you," Leon threatened, and Riku and Sora made haste to get fully—and properly—clothed.

"Hey, it's closing time already," Yuffie spoke up. "Should we leave Riku and Sora to do it?"

"I don't trust them alone anymore…" Leon shook his head. "You get going."

Yuffie nodded. "'Kay. Bye!" She grabbed her things and left the store.

Once she was gone, Leon pondered for a bit. There was something very familiar about those blue eyes. As if he had seen them before…

Leon shook these thoughts away. It was probably nothing.

VVV

Cloud reached his apartment, panting and out of breath. He had never run that fast in his entire life.

Dropping the bag of clothes he had brought with him, he sank onto the couch, burned out.

But no matter how tired he was, Cloud could still feel his heart racing. And he remembered it; he remembered him.

It was him. No doubt about it.

_I've found him… _he thought, with something close to bliss. _I've finally found him. He's not a dream. He's real. REAL. _

But dreams will still be dreams, and reality will still be reality. What can be found in dreams can be found in reality, and what can be found in reality can be in our dreams. But that does not mean that they are the same. Naturally, what we imagine and what we encounter may _seem_ the same, but there are certain differences.

Dreams comfort you. Reality hurts you.

And Cloud was about to learn exactly how different the two were.


	2. Chapter 2: Love's Labor's Lost

**Title: **Only Until Dreams

**Rating:** M

**Summary:** Cloud has been in love with a dream for quite a while. What happens when he meets the real thing? LC side-RS

Wow! unbelievably happy so many people reviewed! It totally cheers my day up when people read my fics, especially since I'm such a newbie in this fandom. Anyway, go LeonCloud! (They're practically canon since KH2!)

VVV

**Chapter Two: Love's Labor's Lost**

VVV

Knock, knock.

Cloud groaned as he heard the annoying knocking sounds. Whoever it was, he or she would have to wait. It was six in the morning, and he was cranky until eight. "Go away," he murmured, before burying himself into his pillow, drowning the incessant and getting louder knocks. He didn't even bother to think about who it was, seeing that the person was already inside his apartment and knocking on his bedroom door. All he wanted to do was go back to dreaming about Squall.

The blonde girl on the other side of the door sighed. "You asked for this, Cloud," she whispered, before taking a deep breath and—

BAM!

Cloud shook awake when he heard the sound of his door being forced open. He looked up to see Naminé grinning at him proudly, holding an axe. "Hey there, emo kid."

The blonde stared at her, then at his broken door, and then at her again. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY DOOR?" he shrieked, standing up and throwing a pillow at her.

His cousin ducked it, laughing. She waved the axe about. "Oh, it's just something I do when I want to interrupt Roxas' and Axel's private time together." She smirked. "Now rise and shine, Cloudy boy, your fluffy brethren of the same name are already out with the sun." She pushed back the window curtains, making the sunlight blind Cloud momentarily. The male blonde moaned and dove for the covers. But Naminé seemed to have anticipated this and pulled his blankets, dragging Cloud with her.

_How did my little cousin get **this** strong? _Cloud thought in disbelief as Naminé succeeded to pulling him onto the floor. "Okay, okay, I'm up!" Glaring at her, he stood up and looked around his bedroom. "The room's a mess, thanks to you." He eyed the broken door. "It's going to cost me a lot to get that fixed."

Naminé waved it away dismissively. "I'll get Axel and Roxas to take care of it for you. And I'll clean up everything, don't worry."

Cloud rolled his eyes. "You have your brother and his boyfriend wrapped around your little finger, Nami."

She grinned. "I have my ways." She put her hands to her hips. "Now that you're up, you can help me with my dilemma."

"The great Naminé? Needing my help?" Cloud shook his head, amused. And then his brain began to work. "Hey, wait a minute—Naminé, how did you get into my apartment? You don't have the keys!"

Naminé gestured to the axe. "What do you think I used this for?"

Cloud gaped at her. "Are you seriously telling me you axed down my apartment door? What will the neighbors think? You might be a serial killer on the loose, for cryin' out loud!"

She rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, everything will be fixed by the time we get back." She threw some clothing at him. "Now go take a bath and get dressed. We have lots to do today."

"We do?" The blonde blinked. "Hey—I haven't agreed to help you yet!"

"Yeah, but you still will," Naminé pointed out, smiling evilly. "Won't you, Cloudy?" She waved the axe around for good measure.

He cursed underneath his breath. Damn his cousin and her manipulative ways. "I don't really have a choice, do I?" He shot a dirty look at her before going to the bathroom.

Naminé smirked. "I have you wrapped around my little finger too, cousin dearest."

VVV

Riku was not in a good mood.

Actually, he was only in a good mood when he was with Sora, or when he was having sex with Sora. He did that a lot most of the time. So he was always in a good mood.

But not today.

Leon was totally pissed off over the fact that they _supposedly_ scared a customer away. Hah! Riku knew better—it was probably Leon and his scowling face that scared that customer. But no amount of reasoning worked with his employer. Leon had deliberately separated him and Sora today. So he was stuck working with Yuffie on the counter and Sora was with Leon throwing clothes into the washing machines. He groaned in frustration.

Yuffie patted him sympathetically. "Aww, don't be so depressed, Riku. Absence makes the heart grow fonder."

"How is that supposed to make me feel better?" Riku growled, annoyed. Yuffie wasn't helping.

Yuffie blinked. "Uh, I dunno, really. I'm just spouting random love quotes in hope that they'll fit your situation."

Riku buried his face in his hands. This sucked. "If he doesn't loosen up and continue cutting my time with Sora…" he raised his fist. "You should get him that boyfriend soon, Yuffie. Or so help me."

The perky brunette smirked. "Don't worry, I've got everything planned out. In fact, I'm kind of meeting up my cousin today."

"Are you setting him up with your cousin?"

Yuffie shook her head. "Nope, I'm setting him up with my cousin's friend."

"Male or female?"

"Male. Spiky hair, blue eyes. At least, that's what Aerith said."

"Cool." Riku brightened up. "Kind of like Sora, don't you think?"

Yuffie thought about it. "Hmm, I guess you're right…."

"Can I come along and meet him?" Riku asked, now genuinely interested.

"Why not? Maybe you can help us come up with a good plan…two heads are better than one, right?" Yuffie chuckled evilly. "And we can even bring Sora along!"

Leon poked his head out of the storage room, frowning. "Less talk, more work, both of you."

The two of them rolled their eyes. "Yes, sir," they said, giving him a mock salute. Once he was gone, they both turned to look at each other.

"So have to get him that boyfriend," they chorused, shaking their heads.

VVV

"So, your cousin is dragging you along to do what?" Sephiroth asked. He, Zack and Aerith had already met up for their daily lunch meeting and the only one missing was Cloud. So they called him up to ask him where he was.

"She's dragging me to find furniture for their new home." The blonde didn't seem too happy about it. "She and her brother, along with her brother's boyfriend, are getting a new apartment. So she wants an advice of a gay man to help her."

Zack chuckled. "Poor, poor Cloud."

"Anyway, I'm really sorry but I can't meet up with you guys today…" They heard a voice in the background saying, "Cloud? Do you think Axel would want fireproof carpets?" and Cloud sighing. "This will probably take long. I'll just tell you guys all about it tomorrow." With that, he hung up.

"Hmmm…furniture shopping," Aerith mused. "One of my greatest loves." Her eyes sparkled. "I wish Cloud brought me along."

"Yeah, he should have," Zack agreed. "You're an expert on gay men."

Sephiroth snorted. "Well said, soldier."

Aerith rolled her eyes at them. "Thanks for being so supportive, guys." She looked at her watch. "But it's a good thing Cloud isn't here…Yuffie's supposed to meet me here and we're going to plan how to set Cloud and her friend up."

Zack perked up. "Can we stick around and help?"

"Of course you can!" Aerith clapped her hands together. "The more, the merrier. Plus…" she bit her lip, "I really want him to get a boyfriend soon. He needs one, don't you think?"

Sephiroth nodded. "Yeah, he does. We should help him as much as we can."

"Aerith?"

The three looked up to see a girl with chin-length hair with two males in tow. She ran eagerly for the brunette. "Aerith!"

"Yuffie!" Aerith stood up to hug her cousin. "I haven't seen you in ages! You look great!"

"So do you!" she chirped.

Aerith turned to look behind her, checking out the silver-haired male and the spiky-haired one. "Who are your friends?"

Yuffie turned, as if she had just remembered them. "Oh yeah—this is Riku," gesturing to the silver-haired one, "and Sora!" She wrapped her arms around both of them. "They're my little helpers."

Aerith giggled. "I was wondering if one of them was the Leon you were telling me about. Because if it were, he's definitely too young for Cloud."

Riku shook his head, grinning. "Well, if I _were_ Leon, I wouldn't mind dating an older guy." He looked around. "Where is he, anyway?"

The brunette shook her head. "Oh, he's not here. He had something else to do." She gestured to Zack and Sephiroth. "But these are my other friends, Zack and Sephiroth. They're together."

"Really now?" Yuffie smirked. "How ironic! So are Riku and Sora!"

Zack laughed. "Hey, if we're going to get a gay couple together, we might as well have help of gay men, right?" He nudged his boyfriend. "Look, Seph, he's like a mini-you."

"You think?" Sephiroth scrutinized Riku.

Riku rolled his eyes. "No way; I'm way hotter than him."

"Riku!" Sora shoved his boyfriend. "Be a little more polite!"

"Aww, c'mon Sora! It's true!" His eyes narrowed. "Unless you think otherwise."

The spiky-haired boy blushed. "I don't! I'm just saying you should watch what you say unless you want to come off as a completely egocentric jerk!"

Yuffie sighed. "But Riku _is_ a completely egocentric jerk, Sora."

"Hey! Whose side are you on?"

Aerith laughed. "If you people can quit arguing for a minute, maybe we can think of a way to set up Cloud and Leon."

"I'm listening," Sephiroth spoke up. Zack nodded, and so did Sora. Riku rolled his eyes and shrugged.

Yuffie looked around. "Okay…any ideas, anyone?"

"Well…"

VVV

"So…why are you moving in with your twin brother and his boyfriend again?" Cloud asked as Naminé looked around for a good wallpaper. "I mean, they're both guys, Naminé. I mean, sure, one of them is your brother, and they're both gay, but—"

Naminé rolled her eyes. "As if those two would even dare to make a move on me. Plus, those two are so into each other no one can get in between them."

"Yeah, but…" Naminé raised her hand to cut him off.

"Look, Cloud," she began, stopping her endless search for wallpapers to stare at her cousin. "Roxas and I have always lived together. We're inseparable. I can't live without him, and he can't live without me. Now he wants to move in with Axel, and he wants me to come along with them. And it's really nothing to me, you know. I don't mind living with both of them, as long as we're together." She smiled softly. "Plus, I can't possibly pay for an apartment rent all by myself. So I need roommates."

Cloud laughed at her last remark, but he could easily see that Naminé was serious about what she was saying. "Well, I guess you'll be fine. You're Naminé, after all."

"Of course." Then she held up two wallpapers; one had a greyish hue and the other was dull white. "Which one looks better?"

The blonde rolled his eyes. "You've got to be kidding me. What sort of choices are those? They look exactly alike. Has color been lost to your world?"

"Hey, it's for _my_ room," Naminé said defensively. "And I don't really like a lot of colors."

"If you keep this up, you'll blend in with your own wall," Cloud joked. "Even your clothes, dear cousin, are the same shade of white."

She raised a finger. "Remember, I brought you along to give me advice for Axel's and Roxas' rooms. Not my room. So don't bother."

Cloud shrugged. "If you wanted help for picking furniture and other stuff for your apartment, shouldn't have you brought Axel and Roxas along? They're the ones who are going to be living with you, you know."

Naminé shook her head. "Those two are worse at these things than me. And that's saying something. If you had seen Axel's previous apartment—" she rolled her eyes, "—and you already know about Roxas' wonderful fashion sense."

Cloud snickered. "Oh yeah. As long as it's in black and white, it'll be fine."

"Exactly." The blonde female nodded. "That's why I need you. At least the place won't be _too_ drab." She winced. "Color has been lost to our world indeed."

"Don't worry; that's why you have me here." Cloud patted her encouragingly. "Now where were we?"

Naminé held up the wallpapers again. "I like the dull white better," she said. "What do you think?"

"Whatever you want."

"'Kay." She shrugged, and took the one she wanted.

Cloud smiled as Naminé began to look for a couch to buy. She and her twin brother, Roxas, were his only cousins—in fact, they were his only living relatives now. Naturally, Cloud was very attached to his two cousins. He was like an older brother to the two.

The three of them shared the same blonde hair color, though Roxas' seemed to a shade darker while Naminé's had a shade lighter. They also had the same sparkling blue eyes, which made everyone comment about how much they all looked alike.

Roxas had recently entered into a relationship with a man named Axel. Cloud wasn't very trusting of the redhead, but Roxas seemed to be happy. And Naminé didn't have any objections, so he let it go. Now, things were certainly developing between them, since Roxas was actually going to move in with Axel. Cloud was a little unsure on this step, but nothing wrong had happened yet, so he couldn't come up with a good enough reason to counter this decision.

Oh well. As long as they were happy and no one got hurt.

He smiled in satisfaction. Everything was fine.

VVV

"Okay, we have three possible set-ups. A) The two of them will know that they're being set up, therefore enabling them to recognize each other. B) Only one of them will know that they're being set up. Or C) Both of them will not know they're being set up and will end up being pleasantly surprised by it." Yuffie looked up. "So what do you guys think?"

"C is obviously the best choice," Sora said thoughtfully. "I'm just not sure about the whole 'pleasantly surprised' reaction."

"Yeah, Leon would probably leave in the middle of the date to murder us the minute he realizes that he's being set up," Riku commented.

Yuffie winced. "You've got a point there."

"Cloud won't be too happy if he finds out we're setting him up…" Zack said slowly. "Is there any way to make it look like a complete and total accident?"

Aerith sighed. "I don't think so…" she bit her lip. "Actually, we told Cloud we were going to set him up. Did you tell this Leon that he was going to be set up?"

Yuffie snorted. "And risk being mutilated and unemployed? No way, honey. Leon holds way too many cards in his deck over me."

"Well, Cloud didn't exactly agree to being set up, anyway," Sephiroth remarked. "So we can just pretend that we're not going to set him up anymore. Even though we still are."

"How are we going to do that, then?"

"Well…" Aerith began thoughtfully, "It's best we get them to meet in a group date first. That way, it won't be awkward and it won't look too much of a set-up if there's a lot of us. See, Cloud isn't exactly the most sociable person around…"

Riku smirked. "We could say the same for Leon, but then that would be a huge understatement."

"It's settled, then," Yuffie said in a decided tone. "A group date. But to where?"

"Well, we could all have dinner someplace nice, but not too fancy," Sora suggested. "Then we could go out after to watch movies or go to the skating rink. You know, where they don't really have to be forced together. Just so they could know and recognize each other."

"That's a great idea!" Five voices exclaimed at once. Sora blushed.

"Sora, I really underestimate the amount of intelligence in you," Riku marveled. Sora rolled his eyes as his boyfriend wrapped his arm around his waist.

Aerith turned to her cousin. "So when can we do this?"

Yuffie smirked. "How about tomorrow?"

VVV

Leon tapped his watch impatiently as his three employees entered the Laundromat, all smiles. He wasn't as happy as they were, though. "Where have you three been?" he said, glaring at each of them. "Your lunch break is only thirty minutes. You took an hour and a half with that break. I've been left here to take all the customers alone."

Riku snorted. "You say that as if we get a million customers every day."

The glare intensified. "The three of you, get to work. Now."

Yuffie grumbled, Sora sighed, and Riku rolled his eyes, but they all began to perform their respective jobs. Since the punishment was still effective, Yuffie and Riku went to the backroom, and Sora joined Leon at the counter.

"So where did you go?" Leon asked the brunette, in a much milder tone. Sora was most probably the sanest and the most honest of the three. In fact, he liked Sora best of his employees, because he was somewhat normal and not as annoying. Lately, though, Riku had been affecting the brunette, so Leon decided they should be separated for a time being. The whole punishment thing was just his nearest convenient excuse—but of course, he wasn't going to tell them that.

Sora smiled cheerfully. "We met a couple of Yuffie's friends."

Leon frowned. He should have known. "No wonder you took forever."

"Oh, they were pretty nice people, Leon," Sora protested. "In fact, I think we're meeting up with them again tomorrow."

"Not during store hours, I hope," Leon muttered.

"Of course not! We're all going out for dinner!"

"That sounds nice," Leon said in as much as a cheerful tone as he could muster. But then again, Sora was happy enough for the two of them. "Have fun, then."

Sora paused for a while. "Maybe you should come along," he suggested. "The more the merrier, right?"

Leon stared at the brunette uncertainly. He hated people—most of them, anyway. And those he could tolerate weren't exactly people he really liked. "You probably don't want me there."

"Don't be silly, Leon!" Sora said, shocked. "We wouldn't mind at all! Plus, it'll be a great chance to make friends!"

"I don't need friends," the dark-haired man said stoically.

"You can never have more than enough friends!" Sora continued, oblivious to Leon's mumblings. "It'll be fun! I'm sure you'll like them!"

"I don't know…"

"Please come?" By this time, Sora was using his puppy dog eyes. It was unbelievably convincing.

Leon sighed. "Fine, I'll go. But don't blame me if you guys don't have a good time."

"Yay!" Sora cheered. "It'll be so cool with you there, Leon!" The dark-haired man just nodded and faced the opposite direction. Sora giggled. When Leon wasn't looking, he sent a thumbs up in Riku's direction.

Riku, in the backroom, cheered inwardly when he saw his boyfriend send him the signal. "Sora's done it!" he whispered excitedly to Yuffie.

Yuffie shook his head. "Man, your boyfriend's good, Riku."

Riku smirked. "I know. I know."

Meanwhile, Leon was groaning to himself.

_How did I get myself into this?_

VVV

After several hours of furniture shopping, choosing wallpapers, making bargains and being forced to carry everything, Cloud and his cousin made their way back to his apartment.

"I hope the doors are fixed," he mumbled darkly. Cloud wasn't exactly the most cheerful person after being dragged around the mall for more than an hour. He got reasonably cranky when he was in there for three hours, and was officially evil when they had gone past the five hour mark. Since they had been there since morning and it was already three in the afternoon, the blonde wasn't exactly in the best mood.

His cousin didn't seem to care, though. But then again, she could twist anyone to do her bidding. She smirked. "Don't worry about the doors. Now…are you ready to see your new and improved pad?"

Cloud looked skeptically at her. "You guys didn't burn it down, didn't you?" He was only joking, but you were never sure with Naminé.

The blonde shook her head. "Nothing like that. Now close your eyes." He obediently did what she said, and then he was led to his apartment.

The door opened and Naminé tugged on his hand. "You can open your eyes now."

Cloud opened his eyes and—

"Whoa." Cloud blinked. When they left the apartment, the doors were all axed down and the place was a mess. Now…

Now the place was spotless. And the doors were fixed. Amazing.

He turned around to see the Roxas, Naminé and Axel grinning at him. "Told you we'd take care of everything," Naminé said, still grinning. "You like?"

Cloud gazed at his apartment. Never before had his place been this clean. It was practically sparkling. Even before he moved in, the place wasn't this clean. It was like heaven. "Me love," he murmured, unconsciously fingering his furniture. "No dust! How _did_ you do it?"

Roxas shrugged. "Axel and I took care of the broken doors, and my darling twin sister cleaned everything up." He wrapped an arm around Naminé's shoulder. "She's a miracle, really."

"Exactly the reason why we want her to move in with us," Axel added. "She's a minimalist and a cleaning freak. The best roommate anyone could have."

Naminé smiled. "It's nice to know I'm appreciated."

"This is…simply amazing," Cloud said as he looked around. "Where did you get the time to clean up, Nami? I mean, we were out the door the minute I finished taking my bath and you were with me all the time we were shopping."

She shrugged. "I cleaned up while you took your bath. You probably just didn't notice as when we left. And I got Roxas and Axel to dust around a bit."

"This is…whoa." Cloud was still left somewhat speechless. "Hey—do you think I can hire you as my housekeeper?"

Naminé laughed. "Sorry, but I've already been hired by some other people." She gestured to her brother and his boyfriend.

Cloud shot a look at Roxas. "You _have_ to lend her to me sometime."

Roxas shrugged. "Sure, why not."

Axel looked at his watch. "I gotta get going," he said. "Larxene's going to kill me if I'm late again. Bye, Rox." He kissed his boyfriend lightly on the lips and left the apartment.

Roxas turned to Cloud, biting his lip. "What do you think?"

Cloud sighed. "Well, I think he's a bit too old for you, but hey. He seems nice enough." Since he was like an older brother to the twins, they always went to him for advice. Well, Roxas did, anyway. Naminé was good on her own.

The younger blonde heaved a sigh of relief. "That's good. I was afraid you wouldn't approve."

"It's your life," Cloud pointed out.

"Yeah…but it's always good to ask people for their advice," his cousin added. "I have to go, too. See you, Cloud." With a small smile and a wave goodbye, Roxas left.

Cloud turned to his cousin. "Not leaving yet, Nami?"

She smiled and shook her head. "Nope." She sat down comfortably on the couch. "Not until you tell me what's on your mind, dear cousin."

Naminé. Perceptive as always.

"How'd you know?" he asked softly as he sat down next to her.

"Hmm…just a feeling." Naminé took hold of his hand. "So? Who is he?"

Cloud laughed. "You even know it's about a guy. You're just amazing." He sighed. No point in keeping it from her. "I've told you about this guy I kept dreaming about for the past year, right?"

Naminé nodded. "I drew him for you one time, I believe."

"Yeah…" Cloud remembered that afternoon when he told Naminé about Squall—back then when he didn't know his name. His cousin had nodded understandingly, took out her pastels and began to draw. After a few minutes, there he was in front of him—in a drawing, yes, but Naminé had drawn him with so much detail and precision that it was as if she had seen him before. He had gaped at the drawing.

"_How—"_

_She had smiled knowingly. "I can see him in your eyes."_

"What about him now?"

"I…his name is Squall," he began hesitantly.

"Squall, then." Naminé folded her hands, expecting more.

Cloud bit his lip. "I…I think I've met him."

"You think?"

"Well, they look alike—" He took a deep breath. "But…you know…he's a dream, right? How can he be real? It's just not possible! I mean—"

"You're not sure if he's really him, or just someone who looks like him." Naminé's no-nonsense voice interrupted his hesitant speeches, voicing his thoughts exactly.

"Uh…yeah, I guess." Cloud sighed. "Why do you even bothering asking me when you already know what I'm going to answer, Nami?"

"Because I want to hear it from you yourself." She stood up. "You have to realize certain things on your own." She smiled kindly at him. "Don't worry. Things will work out." With those cryptic wordings, Naminé left his apartment, leaving Cloud to his own thoughts.

_What did she mean by that? _

VVV

"Hey Cloud!" Aerith greeted cheerfully as he entered the library where she worked. A little _too _cheerfully, in his opinion.

Cloud had been up all night thinking about Naminé's words. His cousin had this uncanny gift of predicting the future, and he wasn't sure if what she said was a warning or an assurance.

To make his day even worse, he didn't dream about Squall yesterday night. It was enough to send warning bells ringing in his head—after all, his dreams had been on-going and he rarely closed his eyes without seeing the dark-haired man before him, no matter what he was going through. So why stop now?

"Hi," he replied softly, sitting down on a table near her desk and biting his lip in contemplation.

Aerith blinked. "Something the matter?" she asked.

"No…it's—" Cloud struggled to find the words, but he gave up. There was no use in trying to explain to Aerith. It wasn't as if she wouldn't understand—it was just too complicated. He forced a smile. "It's nothing, Aeri."

The brunette scrutinized him worriedly, but knew the blonde too well to try and get him to talk when he didn't want to. With a soft sigh, Aerith stopped staring at him, much to Cloud's relief.

"Did you have fun shopping with your cousin?" she asked instead.

"A little," Cloud replied, glad to have something else on his mind. "But you know me and malls." He made a face. "We don't mix."

Aerith laughed. "Yeah…the most time you probably spend there is when you watch movies."

"Very true," he agreed. "So what did you guys do yesterday?"

"We met up with my cousin and her friends," Aerith explained. "In fact, we're planning on all going out for dinner tonight. Wanna come?"

"Sure, I guess…" Cloud looked at her suspiciously. "Is this the same cousin who you were planning with to set me up with someone?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, it is Yuffie, but you already said you didn't want to be set up. I respect your decision, and I'm not going to force you. We're just all going out to eat. Wouldn't that be fun?"

Cloud paused to think about it. Maybe Aerith had finally decided to leave him alone with his love life. That would be good. Plus, it would never hurt to mingle with new people… "Okay, I'll come," he decided.

Aerith clapped her hands together in delight. "Great! Zack and Seph are coming, too. Now we're all in this together!"

Cloud couldn't help but smile as his friend chattered excitedly about how fun tonight would be.

And maybe she was right. Besides, Cloud needed a distraction for the moment.

VVV

They say that fate governs most of your life, but sometimes, human hands are the ones who help you in the right direction. They work hard to show you the love that they think you will need.

But after all that work they've done for you…will it all be lost because of selfishness, insecurity, and misleading perfection?

Friends are supposed to help you, yet they meddle in your affairs. Maybe fate isn't as mystical as you thought it would be.


	3. Chapter 3: The Tempest

**Title: **Only Until Dreams

**Rating:** M

**Summary:** Cloud has been in love with a dream for quite a while. What happens when he meets the real thing? LC side-RS

This is my first (yaoi)KH fic posted here, and this is also my first stab at the LC fandom. I don't know if this is good enough...hopefully it is. I've read plenty of 'dream-fics,' but most of them were RikuSora, not LeonCloud. Oh well...the story isn't quite as repetitive as it mightseem...at least, I think it isn't.

On with the fic!

VVV

**Chapter One: The Tempest  
**

VVV

"So…" Cloud stared at his two friends and the giant mess in his room. "What are you guys doing here again?" 

Zack sighed patiently. "We, your lovable friends, have condescendingly decided to help you in your choice of clothing for tonight!"

"That doesn't explain the mountain of clothes lying in my bed," Cloud said, pointing. "I didn't ask you to ransack my closet—and my house! It's a mess, and I just got this place cleaned."

"Yeah, even your underwear is color-coded," Sephiroth's muffled voice said from the closet where the silver-haired man was throwing shirts out left and right, saying 'no, no, no' every two seconds. "I thought you were a slob, Cloud."

Cloud glared. "I'm not a slob. I'm just not very tidy. It takes too much time. And I think Namine got to my closet in her cleaning frenzy yesterday."

"Cloud, don't you have anything halfway acceptable in your closet?" Zack asked, poking his head out of the closet. "Seriously, man."

The blonde folded his arms. "You guys never have a problem with my clothing before."

Zack and Sephiroth exchanged uneasy glances.

"Well," Sephiroth began casually. "We've never needed to comment on your fashion sense before."

"Or lack of thereof," Zack added. "It's not you don't have an eye for color combination—"

"But as a gay man, you have no idea on how to flaunt yourself properly," Sephiroth continued.

"And most of your clothes are old or ripped," Zack said, holding up a red cape. "What the hell happened to this, Cloud? Did the washing machine eat this up when you weren't looking for did you burn it while ironing?"

Cloud snatched up the cape, holding it close to himself defensively. "Hey! I happen to like this cape," he said pointedly.

Sephiroth nodded sagely. "That's exactly the problem."

Cloud groaned, and tossed the cape onto the gigantic pile in his bed that was steadily growing by the second. "Whatever, guys. I don't care what I wear, as long as it's comfortable."

Zack sighed dramatically. "Oh Cloud," he murmured, throwing his arms around the blonde. "Don't worry. Maybe it's just a phase."

"It must be a disease," his boyfriend said sympathetically, patting his shoulder. "One that can be healed by a good shopping trip."

Zack perked up. "To the mall!" he said enthusiastically, jumping up.

"No way." Cloud shook his head. "I just went there. Besides, I have to go to the library today."

"But isn't it Aerith's shift?"

The blonde chortled. "Suspension, remember?"

"Oh yeah." Zack smirked at that. "Imagine, a librarian getting banned from the library." He and Sephiroth chuckled heartily at their friend's expense. "What a laugh."

"You two are horrible," Cloud told them, though there was a hint of a smile on his face. "Anyway, I got stuck working as her substitute. So I have to get going."

"But what about dinner? You said you were coming with us!" Zack protested, throwing a panicked look at his boyfriend. What about their plan?

Fortunately, Cloud missed the look. "Don't worry, it's only until five. I'll be back by then. Enough time for that dinner date with Aerith's cousin, right?"

The two nodded, inwardly breathing sighs of relief.

"Anyway, can I trust you two in my house…alone?" Cloud folded his arms. "No sex, no cooking, no touching anything in the kitchen, especially the microwave—"

Zack pretended to be hurt. "You wound us with those words, Cloud."

"And I want this mess cleaned up when I get here," the blonde finished, pointing darkly at the clothes in his room. "All right?"

"Yes sir!" The two mock saluted. Cloud gave them one final glare before leaving the apartment.

Sephiroth and Zack exchanged wicked grins. Time to put their plan into action…

VVV

"We should close up early, you know," Yuffie chirped. She was at the counter and Leon looked up from where he was sitting.

The dark-haired man blinked. "Why should we?"

"Well, we've got a dinner date! Plus, it's not like our business is bustling with people," she said sarcastically. Riku poked his head from the storage room.

"She's got a point you know," he added. Sora mumbled an affirmative from the back.

Leon rolled his eyes. "Whatever." His coworkers were strangely more productive today. Maybe they could afford the bonus of closing up early. Besides, what they said true, but he didn't want them to start asking for bonuses like this often. "You guys went overtime with your lunch break yesterday. It's just proper for you to pay it back today. In fact, we should even close up later…"

"Leon!" all three whined, with shocks of both horror and annoyance.

He folded his arms. "Any complaints?"

"Slave driver," Riku murmured, glaring.

"Meanie," Sora said, pouting.

But as usual, Yuffie's remark took the cake. "Sexually-deprived ass," she drawled, tapping her nails against the counter.

Leon rolled his eyes. "One more of those comments, and we'll be here all night," he threatened.

Surprisingly, they all shut up.

The dark-haired man blinked. This dinner date must be really important to them…

"You're still coming, are you, Leon?" Sora asked later on.

Leon frowned. "I don't know."

"But you said you would!" Yuffie reminded him.

"Yeah!" Riku chimed in.

"Well, I—" Leon cut himself off when he found himself subjected to three pairs of puppy dog eyes. "Whatever. But we're still not closing early."

"Okay!" When he wasn't looking, all three exchanged winks. The plan was going great.

VVV

Cloud was sitting in the librarian's seat, idly doodling. No one was even bothering to go inside the library at an hour like this. No doubt they were at home, getting ready for a date or something.

He sighed. A date…his thoughts returned to Squall.

_Maybe I was just hallucinating, _he thought. _They were probably looked alike, but they're not the same. I just jumped to conclusions. Maybe that's what Namine was trying to say…_

He bit his lip. Squall was on his mind too much for it to be healthy. And it was so—

"Cloud?"

He looked up to see Tifa Lockhart, one of his coworkers, standing before him. "Do you have a minute?"

"Sure." He stood up. "What's the problem?"

Tifa gave him a dry smile. "Well, Reno misplaced a few of the books ShinRa company donated to us last week, and Tseng wants them taken into inventory by tomorrow. I can't find them anywhere, and I wanted to ask for help…" she bit her lip. "Is it okay?"

Cloud nodded. "Sure, why not. No one's probably going to come in anymore, anyway. Why don't you put up the closed sign and I'll go head to the back and get started?"

Tifa heaved a sigh of relief. "Oh thank you, Cloud. I wouldn't know what to do without you. Aerith just got suspended," she made a face, "and you can never trust Reno with anything important. Rude's got the flu, and Elena is too eager—" her voice faded into a murmur as she walked away from Cloud. The blonde gathered his things and headed for the backroom. Inside, the books were everywhere.

Cloud inhaled the scent of books, slightly dusty and somewhat intimidating, but his sanctuary still. He had always loved books, even when he was a kid. He smiled fondly as he ran down memory lane; the fairytales and the mystery books, science fiction and romantic comedies. There was always comfort in fantasy.

_Squall…_ unbidden, memories of his dream boy came spilling into his brain again. He bit his lip and shook his head. Now was not the time.

VVV

"Where's Cloud?" Aerith asked once Sephiroth and Zack came in view. She was a little nervous. After all, Cloud would murder them if he found out what they were planning. Besides, she wanted everything to be perfect. And she also wanted Cloud to be happy.

Sephiroth shrugged. "He said he'd be back by five."

Aerith looked at her watch. "It's five-thirty."

"Yeah well, he wasn't back," Zack said nonchalantly, sliding into a seat and pulling Sephiroth next to him. "So we cleaned up his apartment, left the clothes we prepared for him at his bed." He winked. "Really nice clothing. Not like the ones he usually wears."

"Oh, thank God." Aerith gave a sigh of relief. "I just hope he'll actually wear them if the two of you aren't there to force him. I don't want him to come off as a slob."

"It's the lack of fashion sense, Aerith," Sephiroth said wisely.

Zack nodded. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure Cloud wants to make a good impression…deep, deep down."

Sephiroth snorted. Aerith rolled her eyes. "Let's hope."

A few minutes later, Yuffie appeared, Riku and Sora in tow, and a tall dark-haired man along with them. "Aeri! Hey!" The girl greeted excitedly.

"Hi, Yuffie," Aerith returned distractedly, staring at the man before her. Her throat felt dry. Damn, he _was_ hot. He looked scary and intimidating and completely unapproachable, but he was really, really hot.

"He's hot," Zack murmured to Aerith, sharing a smirk with his boyfriend.

Aerith nodded slightly. "Hi, I'm Aerith." The man gave her a cool glance.

"This is Leon," Yuffie introduced, winking. She had a mischievous smirk on her face. "Doesn't talk much. Doesn't get out much. But he does find time to work out." Leon shot a glare in Yuffie's general direction.

"So I see," Sephiroth said, eyes roving appreciatively. "Sephiroth." He extended his hand, and Leon shook it.

"And I'm Zack!" Zack added, wrapping his arms around Sephiroth. "Nice to meet ya!"

"Right." Leon's tone indicated that all niceties were officially over and he was no longer going to speak.

Aerith fought a sigh. Very good-looking, but just the rock Yuffie had described. Well, you win some, you lose some.

"So, uh, Aerith…" Riku looked around as they all settled down in the restaurant table. "I thought you said you were bringing a friend." His tone was casual, so it wouldn't alarm Leon.

"Yeah, Aerith!" Sora said cheerfully. He was more at ease. "So where is he?"

"Cloud? He said he was going to be a little late," She said with a smile, but inwardly she was panicking. _Where are you, Cloud?_

VVV

"Oh man oh man oh man…" Cloud muttered as he dashed out of the library. He had completely forgotten the time. Aerith was going to kill him. That woman was anal about the time. Shit.

He decided not to bother going back to his apartment anymore. He would be really late if he did that, and then he would be signing his death sentence that way. He managed to flag down a taxi and quickly murmured his destination.

During the ride, Cloud tried in vain to tame his wild spikes and to brush away the dirt he had accumulated in the library. He stared at his clothing and winced. Shit. If Aerith killed him for being late, Sephiroth and Zack were going to kill him for looking like a total slob.

He bit his lip nervously once they reached the mall. He quickly paid the taxi driver and then entered the mall. Now, which restaurant did Aerith say they were eating…Seventh Heaven, wasn't it? Right.

Eventually, he managed to spot Aerith and the others sitting in a table outside the restaurant. He took a deep breath, dreading the coming strangulation he would have to endure.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late—" the words died on his mouth the moment he saw who they were with.

_Squall._

VVV

"Cloud!" Aerith breathed a sigh of relief that quickly turned into horror. What the hell was Cloud wearing? She shot a dark look at Sephiroth and Zack, who were also gaping at Cloud.

The blonde, however, had frozen up right there. His eyes were wide, and he looked dumbstruck.

"Uh, Cloud?"

VVV

Leon blinked as a blonde male came skidding in front of them, panting. "Hey guys, sorry I'm late—" their eyes met and suddenly he froze up.

Now where had he seen this before?

"Uh, Cloud?" Sephiroth coughed.

"So he's Cloud?" Leon heard Riku murmur to Sora. "Eyes like yours, Sora."

Blue.

And suddenly it hit him. It was that guy in the Laundromat a couple of days ago! And suddenly Leon felt like smacking himself in the forehead and then murdering Riku and Sora. The guy was probably scarred for life after what he saw. Of course, Riku and Sora probably didn't know that they had caused such a trauma. He opened his mouth to apologize once more when Zack spoke up.

"Hello? Earth to Cloud!"

The blonde started and blinked. "Huh? I—" he looked away from Leon's gaze, blushing. "What?"

"Are you okay, Cloud?" Aerith asked.

"I'm fine…" he murmured, sliding into a seat opposite of Leon's. It was the only seat left. "I'm sorry I'm late. There was an emergency in the library. Tifa needed some help, and then I totally lost track of time. I'm really sorry…"

"I see," Sephiroth said, surveying Cloud with distaste. "No time to go back to the apartment?" There was a slight undercurrent of something that Leon couldn't exactly pinpoint.

Cloud sunk in his seat. "No time. Didn't want to be late."

Zack sighed loudly. "You were going to be late anyway, Spiky."

Yuffie suddenly stood up. "Uh, Aerith?" she said abruptly. "I need to go to the bathroom. To, uh, powder my nose. Come with me."

Aerith blinked, but the other girl was already heading straight for the bathroom, and she had no choice to follow. She quickly excused herself, and then ran after her cousin.

There was a small pause as Aerith and Yuffie disappeared into the bathroom. Zack and Sephiroth seemed displeased with Cloud for some reason and ignored him. The blonde was resigned to this, and began fiddling with the utensils.

"So…" Riku eyed Sephiroth's hair curiously, breaking the silence. "What brand of shampoo do you use?"

The taller silver-haired male pushed his locks proudly. "Herbal Essence Straight and Shiny, of course."

"Ah…" Riku nodded with respect. "I use Herbal Essence Shampoo with Conditioner. It takes care of the split ends."

"Yes, but it can't make your hair _shine_," Sephiroth said empathically. "And that is the most important thing."

While Riku and Sephiroth continued their extremely interesting conversation concerning their hair, Zack and Sora were poring over the dessert menu.

"Mmm, strawberry shortcake," Zack murmured, drooling. "And then maybe banana split sundae?"

"Marjolain is good too," Sora added, showing the photo to the dark-haired man. "Oh, and this pie! And—"

"We ordered already," Leon pointed out, slightly annoyed.

"Yeah, but there's always room for more dessert later," Sora said, smirking.

Leon rolled his eyes. Sora and his sweet tooth…and by the looks of it, he had found a kindred soul in Zack.

His eye fell upon Cloud again. He was wholly occupied with staring at the napkins as if they were the most interesting things in the world.

He sighed. This was going to be a long evening.

VVV

Yuffie pulled Aerith frantically into the bathroom. "Aeri! You said he was single!" she said anxiously, waving her hands around.

"He is!" Aerith put her hands in her hips. "What are you talking about?"

"Are you insane? He came by the laundry store we were working at and brought clothes!" Yuffie was now flailing in half-embarrassment, half-disbelief. "And they were, you know—"

Aerith blinked. Clothes? "Wait a minute. This happened…when?"

"A few days ago, I think. Anyway, Spiky came by, and he gave proof that he's definitely getting some, and he's definitely not single—"

Aerith shook her head. "Yuffie, those were Seph and Zack's clothes. They coerced Cloud into bringing them there."

"He's probably—what?" Yuffie blinked, stopping her rant. "Those weren't Spiky's clothes?"

"No." She shook her head again. "Sephiroth and Zack."

The brunette stared at her, slowly processing the words. "Oh." Then it hit her. "_Oh_. Oh no. Oh shit. Oh fuck!" She smacked her forehead. "Oh man!"

Aerith watched her cousin go through the motions, somewhat amused but also a little concerned. "Uh, Yuff? Done with your little revelation?"

"We are so screwed!" Yuffie moaned, hitting her head against the wall. "Stupid stupid stupid…"

"What are you talking about?"

"Those clothes? I got Leon to take care of them," Yuffie said miserably. "I thought Spiky was active, you know, and I was using it as bait. So Leon probably thinks that Cloud _isn't_ single, and all our hard work is going to go down the drain." She waited as her cousin let the words sink in.

Aerith groaned. "Oh no. Oh shit. Oh man."

The two started hitting their heads on the wall.

VVV

When the two females returned, the food had already been served. Sora and Zack were enthusiastically eating, Riku and Sephiroth were slightly more dignified as they continued their conversation on hair-care products in-between bites, and Cloud and Leon were in their own separate worlds.

Aerith and Yuffie exchanged looks. This was going to need some work.

"So, do you like the food, Cloud?" Aerith asked brightly.

"It's okay," Cloud said. "Did you order for me, Aerith?"

She nodded. "I hope you don't mind."

"So, Cloudster," Yuffie began cheerfully. "It seems like we meet again!"

Cloud blushed. "Right. You must be Yuffie, Aerith's cousin."

The girl grinned. "Yup. So did idiots over here introduce themselves already? Sora and Riku?"

Sora made a noise of protest, and Riku gave her a glare. Leon didn't even react.

Cloud smiled shyly. "He's Riku, and that's Sora. I picked up that much."

"What about this one?" Yuffie pointed at Leon, grinning wickedly. Cloud blushed and looked away.

Yuffie's grin grew wider. "He's—"

"I'm Leon," Leon interrupted, a little annoyed with Yuffie speaking for him as if he were a little child.

"Cloud," he murmured back. "Nice to meet you."

"Hn."

"Don't mind him," Yuffie assured Cloud. "He doesn't like to talk much, but he doesn't bite." Cloud involuntarily smiled at this, and he looked down to avoid Aerith's slightly confused gaze. Only the two females were paying attention to him; Sephiroth, Riku, Sora and Zack were immersed in their own conversations. As for Leon…

He stole a glance at the dark-haired man. Squall…

_But he's not Squall,_ his mind told him. _He said so himself. He's Leon._

He sighed, feeling like an idiot. Why had he been hoping? They just looked alike, that's all. And if he went home right now and went to sleep, he'd be back to his dreams and to his dream boy, who was just as beautiful but more warm than the ice sculpture sitting across him.

It was as if a freezing chill had come upon him, and suddenly Cloud wanted nothing more but to get away. This was too much! He wasn't Squall, and he never would be, and Cloud had been completely mistaken.

"Cloud?" Aerith tugged on him. "You okay?"

Cloud nodded, forcing a smile for Aerith's sake.

"After we're done eating, we could check out the skating rink!" Yuffie proposed gleefully.

Leon raised an eyebrow. "The skating rink?"

"Yeah! It'll be fun! We all know how to skate, right?" Yuffie said, smiling.

Leon hned and looked away, his face as expressionless as ever. "You said only dinner."

"What? Aww, Leon, you're no fun!" Yuffie pouted. "Besides, it won't be that long! We're all done eating, anyway!"

Riku broke away from his conversation with Sephiroth to grin. "Actually, we might be here for awhile, Yuffie." He gestured to Zack and Sora, who were beginning on their desserts.

"Zack, don't eat so fast," Sephiroth cautioned fondly, cleaning Zack's face with a napkin. Zack smiled. "Thanks, Seph."

"How sweet," Yuffie said sarcastically, winking at Aerith. The girl smiled.

Everyone seemed to be having fun but him. Cloud bit his lip, now feeling a little sick. "Guys? I think I'll pass on skating," he said weakly.

They all turned to look at him, surprised. "Huh?"

"I don't feel so good," Cloud explained, slightly surprised that he had taken all the attention. "I think I'll just go home."

"But Cloud!" Zack exclaimed. "You have to come! You love skating!"

"Maybe some other time," Cloud said softly. He really wanted to get away right now.

Aerith looked concerned. "Are you sure you're okay, Cloud?"

"Positive. But I really need to go home now."

Aerith and the others exchanged helpless glances. Well, they didn't count on this to happen. There was hardly any interaction between Leon and Cloud yet. The plan wasn't working properly.

"Well, I guess if you feel that way…" Sephiroth sighed. Maybe they could set up another date some other time. There were hopeful looks; they were all thinking the same thing. Besides, there was no reason not to. Sephiroth himself was forging a good relationship with Riku, and Sora was like a mini-Zack. They were hitting it off well. "We can all just go out another time, right?"

Sora nodded. "Yeah. When Cloud's feeling better." He offered a small smile at the blonde.

"Right. So I should get going—" Cloud made a move to stand up, but Yuffie suddenly put her hand on Leon's shoulder.

"Hey. Leon, give Cloud a ride home."

_What?_ The look of disbelief on Cloud's face was only matched by Leon's slightly surprised look. "What?" Leon said, voicing Cloud's inner tone exactly.

Yuffie rolled her eyes. "You don't want to go to the skating rink, right? So you might as well give Cloud a ride home and be useful. You'll just be a grouch, anyway."

"You're the one who forced me to come," Leon pointed out, a little annoyed.

"Yeah well, you could have at least pretended to be human," Yuffie snapped, her tone angry. "You have been such a rock this entire evening. Now do us all a favor and bring Cloud home."

"Um, it's not really necessary…" Cloud broke in, not knowing if he was excited or afraid of spending time alone with his dream boy lookalike.

Yuffie waved it off. "Don't be silly, Cloud. You're not feeling well. And Leon doesn't mind." Her eyes narrowed. "Does he?"

Leon grunted, and then stood up. "Come on." And Cloud had no choice but to follow.

Once the two were out of sight, the five others broke into applause for Yuffie.

"You are one great actress," Zack said admiringly. "And that was an amazing plan. When did you have time to come up with that?"

Yuffie shrugged, smirking. "Oh, it was a spur of the moment thing. Plus, Leon's a total softie. He probably would offer Cloud a ride if he acted sick enough. He just needed the right push."

"Stroke of genius, Yuffie, stroke of genius," Riku said, patting her on the back. "I'm really impressed."

Aerith smiled as they all praised Yuffie some more. Then she looked at the direction the two men had disappeared to. "Well, we can just hope everything will go well…" she murmured.

VVV

Cloud followed Leon to the open parking lot, the wind playing with his hair. Leon was taking long, fast strides, and Cloud moved quickly to catch up with him. The silence was deafening, yet not oppressive. There were nocturnal sounds everywhere, contrasting the stillness they shared.

He was strangely calm, to add to the eeriness of the evening. A while ago, the chill in his heart was too much to bear, and his heartbeat had been erratic, but now it was nothing mattered anymore.

It was the peace he only felt when he was with Squall.

_But he's not…_

Cling.

Cloud quickly looked up at the sound of jingling keys. "Uh…Leon?"

"Hm?" Leon stopped walking and turned to look at him.

"Do you…do you have a car or something?" Cloud asked shyly, hoping that the aloof man would at least acknowledge his question. It was no secret that Leon made him feel slightly uncomfortable, and he was on his way to being afraid of him.

"No." Leon raised his keys. "My ride is right here." He gestured to his right. Cloud followed his arm and he caught his breath.

"Oh."

A motorcycle.

Instantly, Cloud found himself falling in love with the motorcycle. It was sleek and shiny, and painted black. He had always wanted a motorcycle of his own—in fact, he had already seen his perfect bike and he had begged Cid not to sell it to anyone until he got the money. He had been working hard to save every cent. And the machine in front of him was almost as beautiful as his Fenrir.

"Griever," Leon said unexpectedly.

"Huh?" Cloud was interrupted from his blissful reverie. "What?"

"It's name." Leon patted it fondly, almost as if it were his child. "Griever." His eyes met Cloud's, and he gave him a smile.

"I see…" Cloud smiled back, unconsciously knowing that Leon's smile was a rare occurrence, and this might be the last time he would see it. He suddenly felt so lucky, so blessed, all of the sudden. He turned away to hide his growing smile, not wanting for Leon to think he was making fun of him.

"You like motorcycles?"

He laughed, a little embarrassed. "Is it that obvious? And Griever…he's beautiful. Where did you get him?"

"Put him together myself. I got some help from some mechanic friends, got a few deals here and there with the parts, and did the paint job." Leon was obviously very proud of his machine.

"You're amazing," he found the words slipping out of his mouth. Then he clapped his hand over his mouth. "Oh…I-I'm sorry."

Leon stared at him, unblinking, almost unsure why the blonde was apologizing. "We should go." He said eventually, when the Cloud refused to speak anymore and the silence had become unbearable.

And that was how Cloud ended up with his arms wrapped around Leon's abdomen, leaning close to him. His heart was beating twice as fast, but it felt strangely comfortable to place his head against Leon's muscled back. He felt so safe yet so confused.

_He's not…he's not…_

The ride home was relatively quiet. After Cloud told Leon the street of his apartment, the taller man nodded and sped off. He must be familiar with the neighborhood, Cloud decided. The two of them didn't talk anymore until they reached his apartment.

_But it's okay._

"Uh, thanks," he said awkwardly, getting off the motorcycle and ruffling his unruly spikes. "And sorry. You were kinda forced to give me a ride home and all…"

"I don't mind," Leon said. Cloud blushed and averted his eyes. "And I should be the one apologizing."

The blonde's head snapped up. "What for?"

"For what happened at the Laundromat before," Leon continued. "You know."

Actually, Cloud didn't exactly know. He pretty much remembered freezing at seeing Leon's eyes. Maybe he was talking about the clothes? He blushed deeper at that. "Uh…let's just forget about it," he muttered.

Leon shrugged. "If you say so." With a nonchalant wave, he revved up the engine and went away.

Cloud watched as the faint light of the motorcycle disappeared into the night.

And then he looked up to see storm clouds on their way.

VVV

Namine looked out of the window as lightning flashed in the sky. The clouds were gathering; rain was starting to patter down the windowpane.

She smiled softly. "They always looked good together," she murmured.

Roxas, who was lounging by the fire, looked up. "Huh?"

His twin shook her head. "The clouds and the rain." Her eyes glittered. "A storm is coming."

VVV

Life is not waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain. But what happens when you're caught in a whirlwind of a thunderstorm, and the chill freezes you to your veins? What if you can't survive the raindrops falling down your cheek?

Careful there…not everyone survives a storm they didn't prepare for.


End file.
